Why I Am So Emotional About Taylor Swift's Songs
There are many factors that could play a role here, but I think it's a combination of her abilities, her life stories, and her family.
Last week, I completed Taylor Swift’s The End of An Era docuseries. I discovered the unknown part inside of me. I never knew I was connected to her in any way before; I never had her songs as a national anthem; I can name no more than five of her songs. But, mysteriously, once I watched the docuseries, I became deeply engaged with her, as if I were on her team, preparing and performing the tour concert with her.
What could be the reason?
Look at Taylor Swift; she definitely is good at songwriting. The vocabulary choices she made to include in her songs are outstanding. But we won’t have a great performer if she never gets to perform in the first place. In the documentary, it seems to start when Majorie, Taylor’s grandma, encouraged her daughter to buy a piano. It was like she was seeing something in that little Taylor. Throughout the documentary, we will see this repetition of how her family- her mom, her dad, and her brother played a large supporting role, encouraging her when she felt disappointed, holding her hands when she blamed herself for her mistakes, or even giving her ideas for her songwriting. Family to me plays a large role in everyone's life; how the person is and will develop is largely determined by this factor. Thus, looking back at her life as an outsider, I found that her family is one of the true sources of her greatness, even encouraging her to embrace her true identity.
Embracing oneself.
As a foundation, when someone fully accepts who they are as a person, they will likely have no shame and fear in being true to themself and others. So, maybe the reason we’ve all felt connected and resonated with her song is not only about the lyrics and melody, but also that she did put her stories, her pain, her happiness, as if she was alive when we’re listening to her tune. Reinforce with her life stories that align with her songs. So, each era is condensed within each of her albums; from her love story in a fairy tale, we saw she grew into a showgirl.
Now, beyond her music, she does inspire me to become someone who’s true to myself.